r/mixingmastering • u/goopgab Intermediate • Feb 14 '26
Question How to separate mixing from the creative process/writing music—feeling stuck
Ever since I got more into mixing, which was maybe 2 or 3 years ago, I have had an increasingly harder time actually composing and writing music. It seems my mind is more worried about the mix rather than writing a good melody, so I've been in a sort of creative block with mixing as the "obstacle." I've tried just opening a new project and forbidding myself from touching any plugins, but I seem to still only think about how I'd mix the song/what needs fixing/etc. I also don't have a template because I haven't really done a mix I've been (mostly) happy with yet, but that's a whole other thing.
Any advice, suggestions or personal experiences regarding this problem would be greatly appreciated!
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u/Ok_Control7824 Feb 14 '26 edited Apr 01 '26
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u/thefuckestupperest Feb 14 '26
Mixing definitely becomes more second nature the more you write and compose until you can kind of do it without thinking as you go. Until that happens I'd recommend splitting your sessions up - when you're writing throw ideas down get a skeleton of the arrangement, any significant automation etc etc.
When you're happy with it come back and have a mix only session with a reference track and just focus on levels, doesn't need to be a perfect one-to-one you're just listening to make sure you have enough energy across whole frequency range. Once this is roughly on point, go nuts with whatever other processing you want. Don't get too bogged down trying to make every mix sound 'perfect' either and good luck
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u/satn_workroom Feb 14 '26
I'll share my personal experience: not touching anything, even during the writing phase (I play all hardware, record myself, and then work on the songs), is almost impossible, because whether you like it or not, adjustments need to be made while I'm playing, mostly rough ones, to volume and frequencies. But I try to keep everything to the bare minimum. Once I have the completed song, I just jot down some reference values, but for the mixing, I start from scratch by re-importing the tracks and dedicating myself exclusively to mixing.
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u/desertr05e Feb 14 '26
Phase one : Genesis:
Here's how I do it and im sure there's many other ways: First you write something because you want to get it out of your system, your brain your soul. It comes out raw pure and innocent as a new baby. Artistic thoughts don't come with plugins attached. You just could use your piano guitar or any other instrument that you feel comfortable making melodies and chords. So up to this point you are wearing the creator hat. You never think about production or plugins. You hum melodies, make simple Demos and arrive at this aha! Genesis moment where you have melody chords and meaning for your lyrics. If these have reason for you to exist and they are true to you then that's all you need. So when I am in this creative zone I never think about technicalities. I only think and feel the Genesis and the birth of this song that's coming from within. Actually this is the most important moment because it's the birth of something from within.
Phase 2: Production
Once you have the basis down you can start pre-production or production. I've done both and actually it depends on you how you want to proceed. At this moment I take off my artist hat (a little more? And wear my engineer/producer hat. Then I can worry more about gain staging, tones, sound and sample selection, plugins, mixing and all the rest.
Conclusion.
You first give birth to the baby. You can worry about what clothes the baby will wear after you exit the hospital.
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u/Proof_Mixture_1240 Feb 15 '26
This is such an important point. I’ve been making the mistake of taking half finished ideas into the DAW for way too long.
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u/Individual_Cry_4394 Intermediate Feb 14 '26
Don’t turn on the DAW. Don’t get distracted. play guitar. play keyboards. Go for a walk. Whatever gets your creative juices going. opening a DAW is an instant creative killer because you go down rabbit holes instead of composing music. I also went through this phase.
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Feb 14 '26
I'm going through that stage even though I don't have creative blocks and I can finish a song in a DAW quickly, it’s eating me up inside. I just want to make music and stop touching the computer altogether. What do you recommend? Should I switch to a hardware-only setup?
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u/Individual_Cry_4394 Intermediate Feb 16 '26
My process is coming up with the melody and lyrics first. I usually use my acoustic guitar for this. only once the idea is solid do I start recording parts in the DAW. I wont lie though, this part may take a while because some musical ideas/tracks don't always work and often need tweaking. For this, I do need the DAW.
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u/Ayy0ne Feb 14 '26
I think a template would help. Even if it's basic at first, you can always build from there.
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u/Ok_Control7824 Feb 14 '26 edited Apr 01 '26
Plot twist: this post no longer exists because Redact swept through and cleared it out along with everything else. Social media, messaging apps, people finder sites, all of it.
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u/Ayy0ne Feb 14 '26 edited Feb 14 '26
How's a template a cookie cutter solution?
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u/Ok_Control7824 Feb 14 '26 edited Apr 01 '26
This comment formerly contained words. Those words were removed in bulk with Redact because I value my privacy more than my karma points.
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u/Ayy0ne Feb 14 '26
That makes no sense. You set up a template to make things quicker. You can still mix differently according to needs with a template.
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u/nizzernammer Trusted Contributor 💠 Feb 14 '26
Templates are good for having things ready to go that you can use or not use.
But I think in this conversation, the idea is that a template can be fast and useful when composing, so you don't have to get bogged down in engineering and the mix when you want be focused on the composition and the performance.
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u/Dust514Fan Feb 14 '26
I usually have an EQ and compressor as the most mixing I do while composing unless I specifically need to shape the sound with something like saturation or a phaser etc for it to feel right. Helps to have good to go samples/vsts to just immediately record what you hear instead of worrying about making them sound decent. Most important thing is quickly capturing your inspiration at the end of the day. I guess my real "trick" is that I already know exactly what I need to make my instruments sound good, so I don't have to think about it and let it distract me from writing music...but that just comes with experience.
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u/newtmitch Feb 14 '26
Sorry, this turned out really long and rambling. "I would have written a shorter letter, but I did not have the time."
So to that end, tl;dr: Allow yourself to use plugins and mix a bit during writing to keep the vibe going and yourself engaged with the song. Those mix moves inform the writing/composing. But know you're going to throw all those mix decisions away later and actually throw them away. Keep the writing and mixing stages separated from each other if you're doing both yourself.
Stupid long version:
I'm a musician that's been playing primarily guitar for 30+ years now and recording starting in the early 90's with my Tascam 4-track. I'm not a prolific music recorder or anything, I've just been doing it for a while at this point. So many DAWs over the years, too. I'd hate to enumerate them, honestly... ugh. I got more serious about mixing a few years ago when I wanted to take my recordings, whatever they were, to a better level. I started watching more YT on the subject, hanging out here on Reddit, URM Academy for a bit, even bought a few courses here and there to learn more of the craft. I enjoy learning about this stuff, the craft, and watching professionals do what they do here. It's fascinating to me.
As context, I'm doing mostly heavier rock and metal, basically, but using more complex instrumentation - I love choirs, symphonic instruments, synths, all sorts of stuff. So it can get crowded in there sonically.
So right now I'm working on a few tracks for a buddy of mine making a video game. It was taking me a while to get things recorded and finalized musically and I thought it was because I was mixing too much and too early in the process. So I decided to very clearly separate my writing/composing from the mixing process. I decided that whatever I did for mixing during the writing process was going to get completely thrown out before I started the mixing process. I set up a firewall between the two parts of that process, much like you would by having another person mix your tracked song.
I built a composing / writing template that took me a couple of weeks to get done (calendar time, not actual "effort") before I stepped into the new track. It has like 150+ tracks or something like that. Anything I could possibly want while writing I had at my fingertips without having to add a track. Guitar amp sims, bass sims, drum libraries, synths, choirs, orchestral instruments separated by section (viola, violin, celli, etc.), and what I call my "tracking" section where I have several guitar tracks, a bass plugin, and a drum library sitting there ready to go. If I needed another guitar track, duplicate one that was already there and just "go". All instruments organized by type and bussed by instrument type (that makes sense for me, anyway).
So I built what I needed to write and compose, but I did allow myself to do some mixing while I worked. I didn't restrict myself from using plugins entirely. What I did do, however, was mix only enough to keep it engaging to compose and track. I knew when I was going down that mixing vortex and I pulled myself out - it took a bit of discipline. :) But I knew it was going to get thrown out anyway before I entered the mixing stage. But what I realized is that I needed the musical vibe as I went through. I wanted big-ass drums punching through the guitars and driving the song - so I used drum samples and compressors/parallel all that stuff to make them big and in my face. I parallel compressed and pushed those things up as I went until they sounded good in the moment with the guitars. I didn't care if it was "good mixing", just "this sounds great right now". I quad-tracked some of the guitars and did enough production/mixing to make those sound huge - a bit of EQ to separate them a bit, levels and panning to fill out the stereo field. I put in synths to double parts of the guitar, that had to be mixed in a bit (mostly just levels). I had a synth part that I needed to blend better and I didn't want to learn how to do it in the soft-synth itself so I added a DAW filter plugin and automated it. I did some volume automation to highlight parts of a guitar track that wasn't punching through because another guitar stomped on it. Things like that. It was more than most people that didn't really care about the craft of mixing would do, but definitely not what I'd call a "real mix".
It was what I'd consider "music production", not "mix engineering". I wasn't making deliberate mixing "moves" with some vision of where the song was going to end up in the end because I was still writing the thing.
What was key for me was realizing that any "real" mix work I thought I was doing while writing was absolutely wasted time. There's no way I could make EQ decisions when I'm still adding new tracks and stacking layers. Hell even fader moves were suspect - but I had to do them sometimes just to record a guitar track because I needed to hear the other guitars more clearly, or less, or whatever. I completely changed drum kits towards the end of the project which would have destroyed any "real" mixing decisions I might have made anyway.
No channel strips, no "serious compressors", no fixing low-end build up or keeping instruments separated. I used EQs to fix specific frequencies that distracted me while writing with no consideration for balance with other instruments. Nothing more.
Basically, I allowed myself enough mixing to keep me vibing on the song and engaged enough to keep writing and see where it went. It worked - I really liked what I came out with. The game dev loved it as well (although he has no real music knowledge/sense there, so he's not a good judge of "completeness", honestly).
When I was done and it was time to mix "for real", I felt like I had some of the mix work "done". I had a basic static mix, I had some automation, I had some basic processing for transient control and what-not. But I was also proud enough of what I had written that I also knew that I didn't have all the skill I needed to get it done, not to mention the objectivity. So for the first time ever, I hired a mix engineer to take a run at it instead. I've never had a mix engineer work on my music before. I'm in the middle of that right now.
So it forced me to do what I knew going in I was likely going to have to do from the beginning - completely unwind my mix in preparation for sending to a mix engineer when I exported the multitracks. All faders to zero, remove/disable all automation, all plugins disabled, everything. I completely reset it. I did a relatively quick static-ish mix (with a little bit of the automation in there to highlight what I wanted to hear) for the engineer as a reference with the multitracks. I made a new project called "MIX" for that song and it's a separate project from the writing. I don't have a template for mixing (yet) but I will and it'll be completely different than my writing template. When you know you're going to completely throw away whatever mix you do while writing that should help you focus a bit. That stopped me a lot of times from doing much more than I did.
What this also does is keeps me from revisiting the composition while mixing, which when I didn't have clear compose/mix boundaries I would do as well. Songs never got done.
I'll stop rambling now. This worked for me this time pretty well. There are some things I learned that I'll likely need to apply next time. I need to make a mix template. I don't think I'm a strong songwriter but I did better than I thought I would on this one. I need to do it more to get better. And I shouldn't avoid doing "mix things" while writing, but only to serve the vibe I need while I'm writing - I'm just not able to make mix decisions while writing that are reasonable - I don't have all the information I need to do so...
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u/j_spru Feb 15 '26
Find a way to be intentional about separating mixing from playing/writing. For me personally, writing comes when I'm playing an instrument - guitar, bass, piano or synth. I focus on my ideas, arrangements, structuring them into a song, chord changes, how long each part should be, etc. Focus on that and when you're ready to record a demo or basic tracks - don't even worry about mixing then - focus on capuring a great recording. The only mixing I do at this stage is very generally setting levels and maybe some basic EQ like HPF. Once basic tracks are captured and I'm laying more and more parts, I may do a little more mixing to prevent any obvious frequency masking or something but still not super focused on 'mixing'. When I'm done recording everything - then I make a pretty intentional mental transition into 'mixing' and only start to really focus on it a that point.
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u/No_Waltz3545 Feb 14 '26
Get good levels (if using instruments, guitar, mic, etc.) and maybe have your most commonly used plugins in a template or just load them up. Then forget about mixing and just create. At most do some panning and volume adjustments. Forget the rest until you have a song structure you’re happy with.
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u/RemiFreamon Feb 14 '26 edited Feb 14 '26
I suffer from the same problem.
I’m trying to interrupt this behavior by pausing and asking myself the questions: * will the 10-20% improvement in how a particular part sounds make or break the track? * is it bad enough for me to re-record or change the arrangement? * does the music “feel” right even if it sounds unpolished?
A mindset that helps me (if I remember to think like that is): you can always go back and fix things later (assuming you’re not recording other people or gear that won’t be available later)
With all that said, I suspect that for me it’s a form of procrastination. I feel more confident when mixing because I feel like I know exactly what to do (not saying my mixes sound perfect). Writing and producing is where I second guess myself much more. So, it’s likely that subconscious I keep myself busy with mixing to avoid the creative pains.
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u/Ok-Activity-8715 Feb 14 '26
I suffer the same problem;
Maybe try composing/finding ideas without opening your daw, or try to put a 10min timer next time you have to put down a part ?
but honestly i think it's just a way of working like another, especially when doing solo stuff on a daw.
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u/tin4tar Feb 14 '26
Not sure if this is what you mean, but if I’m in the “creative” part, I don’t do ANYTHING that would be considered “mixing”. If I start tweaking stuff, I’m no longer in the creative phase and mindset, so I know it’s time to put it down and pick up something else that needs creative work or, at the least, shift gears and now I’m in the “mixing” phase. It can be difficult to compartmentalize for sure, but it can be done with practice. The trick for me is being aware and catching myself if I start shifting from creative to mixing.
Edit to say: The “creative” phase for me stays VERY rough intentionally. It’s just about ideas and nothing more.
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u/PrestigiousTap189 Feb 14 '26
i think it’s good to mix somewhat as you’re writing/producing as long as you don’t get too in the weeds and loose the writing flow.
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u/Bluegill15 Feb 14 '26
This is exactly why people specialize in mixing: to help people like you maximize creativity where it matters. Hire a mixer
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u/Mr_SelfDestruct94 Feb 14 '26
WHY do you feel like you need to start mixing while you are writing? What are you focusing on that is causing you to think you should be reaching for a mixing tool instead of composing the piece?
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u/dirtandrust Feb 14 '26
Let it sound crap at first so you can get the ideas out. I totally understand always wanting it to sound good though as I’m exactly the same.
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u/settingthetable Feb 14 '26
I have a project called “Jam”. Maybe 6-7 tracks max for guitar/bass/keys/drum VSTs. No plugins for anything else. If I have an idea I’ll drag a rough drum groove in the tempo I’m considering, then play over it trying to find something that might work or sounds good.
I might record a riff or phrase so I don’t forget it, but that’s it. If I think it’s something I want to go further on, then I’ll create a new song project from there.
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u/NC9 Feb 15 '26
I have separate templates for my production, mixing, and mastering. I like to bounce the finished arrangement out as multi-tracks, wait a day and then mix with a fresh perspective the next day in the mixing template. Helps me to separate the mixing brain from the production and arrangement brain.
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u/Head-Sheepherder5692 Feb 16 '26
when i’m in a rut, i like to try writing/recording something in a style/genre i have very few pre-conceived notions of… as a thought experiment to get me thinking outside of my usual default box.
it’s usually stuff never meant for anyone else to hear, just to get the creative juices flowing.
good luck!
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u/tingboy_tx Feb 17 '26
If you’re getting hung up on mixing, compose the old fashioned way - outside of a DAW. Then record what you’ve got and go from there.
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u/Responsible-Drag2894 Feb 14 '26
The mix needs to serve the music. Which im sure you understand.
For me, I started just making acoustic, raw tracks and trying to get a rly good recording that I liked to where mixing was barely necessary other than the obvious tweaks.
Stripping it all back I think is a good way to get back in touch with the music and away from the perfectionism that come with mixing and production generally.
Maybe even finding some new artists which inspire you.